Responsive Grid

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The grid is a powerful mobile-first flexbox system for building custom layouts. It is heavily influenced by Bootstrap’s grid system.

The grid is composed of three units — a grid, row(s) and column(s). Columns will expand to fill their row, and will resize to fit additional columns. It is based on a 12 column layout with different breakpoints based on the screen size. The number of columns and breakpoints can be fully customized using Sass.

• How it works
• Grid size
• Grid attributes
• Row attributes
• Column attributes
• Default breakpoints
• Auto-layout columns
  • Equal-width
  • Setting one column width
  • Variable-width
• Responsive attributes
  • All breakpoints
  • Stacked to horizontal
• Reordering
  • Offsetting columns
  • Push and pull
• Alignment
  • Vertical Alignment
  • Horizontal Alignment
• Customizing the grid
  • Number of columns and padding
  • Grid tiers

How it works

<ion-grid>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col>
      1 of 3
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      2 of 3
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      3 of 3
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
</ion-grid>

The grid is a mobile-first system made up of any number of rows and columns. It is built with flexbox making it extremely responsive. The components that make up the grid can be written as an element (e.g., <ion-grid>) or added as an attribute to any element (e.g., <div ion-row>).

Here’s how it works:

• Grids act as a container for all rows and columns. Grids take up the full width of their container, but adding the fixed attribute will specify the width per screen size, see grid size below.
• Rows are horizontal groups of columns that line the columns up properly.
• Content should be placed within columns, and only columns may be immediate children of rows.
• Grid columns without a specified width will automatically have equal widths. For example, four instances of col-sm will each automatically be 25% wide for small breakpoints.
• Column attributes indicate the number of columns to use out of the default 12 per row. So, col-4 can be added in order to have three equal-width columns.
• Column widths are set as a percentage, so they’re always fluid and sized relative to their parent element.
• Columns have padding between individual columns, however, the padding can be removed from the grid and columns by adding no-padding on the grid.
• There are five grid tiers by default, one for each responsive breakpoint: all breakpoints (extra small), small, medium, large, and extra large.
• Grid tiers are based on minimum widths, meaning they apply to their tier and all those larger than it (e.g., col-sm-4 applies to small, medium, large, and extra large devices).
• Grids can easily be customized via Sass variables. See customizing the grid.

There are some known bugs with flexbox that should be checked prior to creating issues with Ionic.

Grid size

By default, the grid will take up 100% width. To set a maximum width based on the screen size add the fixed attribute. The maximum width of the grid for each breakpoint is defined in the $grid-max-widths Sass variable. For more information, see customizing the grid.

Grid attributes

The grid takes up full width and has padding added to it based on the screen size. There are two attributes that can be used to adjust this behavior.

Row attributes

Rows are horizontal components of the grid system and contain varying numbers of columns. They ensure the columns are positioned properly.

By default, columns will stretch to fill the entire height of the row and wrap when necessary. There are several attributes that can be added to a row to customize this behavior.

Column attributes

Columns are cellular components of the grid system and go inside of a row. They will expand to fill their row. All content within a grid should go inside of a column.

By default, columns will stretch to fill the entire height of the row. There are several attributes that can be added to a column to customize this behavior.

Default breakpoints

The default breakpoints are defined by the $grid-breakpoints Sass variable. It can be customized to use different values for the breakpoint, rename and add/remove breakpoints. For more information, see customizing the grid.

Note: the first breakpoint must have the value set to 0 and all breakpoint values must be in ascending order.

Auto-layout columns

Equal-width

By default, columns will take up equal width inside of a row for all devices and screen sizes.

<ion-grid>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col>
      1 of 2
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      2 of 2
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col>
      1 of 3
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      2 of 3
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      3 of 3
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
</ion-grid>

Setting one column width

Set the width of one column and the others will automatically resize around it. This can be done using our predefined grid attributes. In the example below, the other columns will resize no matter the width of the center column.

<ion-grid>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col>
      1 of 3
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-8>
      2 of 3 (wider)
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      3 of 3
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col>
      1 of 3
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-6>
      2 of 3 (wider)
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      3 of 3
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
</ion-grid>

Variable-width

Using the col-{breakpoint}-auto attributes, the column can size itself based on the natural width of its content. This is extremely useful for setting a column width using pixels. The columns next to the variable-width column will resize to fill the row.

<ion-grid>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col>
      1 of 3
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-auto>
      Variable width content
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      3 of 3
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col>
      1 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      2 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-auto>
      <ion-input placeholder="Variable width input"></ion-input>
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      4 of 4
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
</ion-grid>

Responsive attributes

All breakpoints

To customize a column’s width for all devices and screens, add the col-* attribute. These attributes tell the column to take up * columns out of the available columns.

<ion-grid>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col col-4>
      1 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-2>
      2 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-2>
      3 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-4>
      4 of 4
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
</ion-grid>

Stacked to horizontal

Use a combination of width and breakpoint attributes to create a grid that starts out stacked on extra small screens before becoming horizontal on small screens.

<ion-grid>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col col-12 col-sm>
      1 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-12 col-sm>
      2 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-12 col-sm>
      3 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-12 col-sm>
      4 of 4
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
</ion-grid>

Reordering

Offsetting columns

Move columns to the right by adding the offset-* attributes. These attributes increase the margin left of the column by * columns. For example, in the following grid the last column will be offset by 3 columns and take up 3 columns:

<ion-grid>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col col-3>
      1 of 2
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-3 offset-3>
      2 of 2
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
</ion-grid>

Offsets can also be added based on screen breakpoints. Here’s an example of a grid where the last column will be offset by 3 columns for md screens and up:

<ion-grid>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col col-md-3>
      1 of 3
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-md-3>
      2 of 3
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-md-3 offset-md-3>
      3 of 3
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
</ion-grid>

Push and pull

Reorder the columns by adding the push-* and pull-* attributes. These attributes adjust the left and right of the columns by * columns making it easy to reorder columns. For example, in the following grid the column with the 1st col description will actually be the last column and the 2nd col will be the first column.

<ion-grid>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col col-9 push-3>
      1 of 2
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-3 pull-9>
      2 of 2
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
</ion-grid>

Push and pull can also be added based on screen breakpoints. In the following example, the column with the 3rd column description will actually be the first column for md screens and up:

<ion-grid>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col col-md-6 push-md-3>
      1 of 3
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-md-3 push-md-3>
      2 of 3
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-md-3 pull-md-9>
      3 of 3
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
</ion-grid>

Alignment

Vertical alignment

All columns can be vertically aligned inside of a row by adding different attributes to the row. For a list of available attributes, see row attributes.

<ion-grid>
  <ion-row align-items-start>
    <ion-col>
      1 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      2 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      3 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      4 of 4 <br>#<br>#<br>#
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>

  <ion-row align-items-center>
    <ion-col>
      1 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      2 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      3 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      4 of 4 <br>#<br>#<br>#
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>

  <ion-row align-items-end>
    <ion-col>
      1 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      2 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      3 of 4
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      4 of 4 <br>#<br>#<br>#
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
</ion-grid>

Columns can also align themselves differently than other columns by adding the alignment attribute directly to the column. For a list of available attributes, see column attributes.

<ion-grid>
  <ion-row>
    <ion-col align-self-start>
      <div>
        1 of 4
      </div>
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col align-self-center>
      <div>
        2 of 4
      </div>
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col align-self-end>
      <div>
        3 of 4
      </div>
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col>
      <div>
        4 of 4 <br>#<br>#<br>#
      </div>
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
</ion-grid>

Horizontal alignment

All columns can be horizontally aligned inside of a row by adding different attributes to the row. For a list of available attributes, see row attributes.

<ion-grid>
  <ion-row justify-content-start>
    <ion-col col-3>
      1 of 2
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-3>
      2 of 2
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>

  <ion-row justify-content-center>
    <ion-col col-3>
      1 of 2
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-3>
      2 of 2
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>

  <ion-row justify-content-end>
    <ion-col col-3>
      1 of 2
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-3>
      2 of 2
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>

  <ion-row justify-content-around>
    <ion-col col-3>
      1 of 2
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-3>
      2 of 2
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>

  <ion-row justify-content-between>
    <ion-col col-3>
      1 of 2
    </ion-col>
    <ion-col col-3>
      2 of 2
    </ion-col>
  </ion-row>
</ion-grid>

Customizing the grid

Using our built-in grid Sass variables and maps, it’s possible to completely customize the predefined grid attributes. Change the number of breakpoints, the media query values, the number of columns, and more.

Number of columns and padding

The number of grid columns and their padding can be modified via Sass variables. $grid-columns is used to generate the widths (in percent) of each individual column. $grid-padding-width is used for the padding on the grid, while $grid-padding-widths allows breakpoint-specific widths that are divided evenly across padding-left and padding-right as well as padding-top and padding-bottom of the grid and columns.

$grid-columns:               12 !default;

$grid-padding-width:         10px !default;

$grid-padding-widths: (
  xs: $grid-padding-width,
  sm: $grid-padding-width,
  md: $grid-padding-width,
  lg: $grid-padding-width,
  xl: $grid-padding-width
) !default;

Grid tiers

To customize the breakpoints and their values, override the values of $grid-breakpoints and $grid-max-widths. For example, to only use 3 breakpoints, the following could be written:

$grid-breakpoints: (
  sm: 0,
  md: 768px,
  lg: 1024px
);

$grid-max-widths: (
  sm: 420px,
  md: 720px,
  lg: 960px
);